This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for eastern West Virginia,
northern and central Virginia, and central and western Maryland
with the exception of Garrett County.

Friday through Wednesday:

Hurricane Irma will likely have some impact on our region between
Monday and Wednesday. While the impacts will be substantially less
than what is being experienced in the Caribbean…flooding rain,
tornadoes, and damaging winds are all POTENTIAL threats for our
region. More details will be available in the days ahead. For the
official track forecast, consult the National Hurricane Center`s
webpage.

CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE MOVING TOWARD FLORIDA – specific path east or west of FL yet to be deterrmined (map courtesy of Weather Channel)

Maximum sustained winds: 185 mph

Location: 1405 miles from MIami, FL…1470 miles from Key west, FL…

Slight strenghtening anticipated as long as it stays over water, some weakening to category 3-4 if it spends time over Cuba before turning northward.

Tropical storm force winds expected in south Florida by Friday evening, hurrican e winds possible by SAturday based on track

Along with the school closures, Monroe County officials issued a mandatory evacuation notice for visitors, beginning at 7 a.m. Wednesday.Officials also issued a mandatory evacuation for residents, beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday. “If ever there was a storm to take seriously in the Keys, this is it,” Monroe County Emergency Management Director Martin Senterfitt said in a news release. “The sooner people leave, the better.”